Technology
'Overview' Dreyrull, or Terrak, as the humans know it, is on the verge of an industrial revolution. Over recent decades, innovations in black powder, metal working, mass production, steam, and magitech have given insights into where weapons, buildings, transportation, and manufacturing might be able to move ahead more quickly, more powerfully, and with less physical effort on the part of humans, furrs, and their beasts of burden. When the world settled into new continents, it reminded man that their Terrak was a big place, and seemed to be getting even bigger - further to travel meant, in a sense, further to expand their reach and strengthen their hold. The rebuilding efforts escalated technology to a threashhold of new ambitions, and new innovations, which are about to be realized.The old ways of blade, ordo, and elbow grease are still the favored ways, but the new innovations are on the verge of being released from the labs of alchemists and magitechnicions, and out into the public realm. 'Transportation' 'Mounts' For the vast majority of Dreyrull, those who walk on two legs travel on the backs of ordo, a type of giant riding bird. Only slightly rarer are the Plated Deer, whom are able to pull vastly greater weights, are used as a form of defense, and whom are considered a more "noble" beast. Only those of humanity and furrkind that believe in taming aershaa would consider riding one, and those that can ''are few and far between. Aershaa mounts are typically clipped Ice aershaa that have had their spikes removed and the occasional well-tamed Stone . It is said only a true king of the land can tame and ride a dragon - it's been hundreds of years since anyone has seen or heard of such a thing, and as it stands, the talent has fallen into myth. 'Vehicles' Pedalwind technology is the invention of furrkind, and has gained popularity amongst the vallies of Hasseran and the floating islands of Listhrea. No two of these unique contraptions are alike, varying from bicycles with propellers and flapping wings, to swirl-propellered baskets. A few attempts have been made by both humanity and civilized furr at creating the steam-powered car, but as of yet, there has been little success. The appearance of such things is considered hazardous, as most attempts have ended explosively and destructively. A Caniir in service of man by the name of Wilfred has recently invented the hot air balloon. To ride one, one would have to come in contact with him. ''by John Freeman AKA "Aurrie" 'Manufacturing Industry' Today, most small villages have a resident blacksmith to provide tools, but still rely on larger, river-based towns nearby for services from their various mills. Grain mills are powered by hydraulic waterwheels that rely on the river's flow to turn the wheels that crush the grain, though some have adaptations that allow a team of plate deer to turn the wheel using a turnstile as well, in times of lower river flow. Lumber mills rely on a combination of hydraulics and magitech to spin the blades as a log is pulled manually along a belt, cleaving the log in two. Textile mills are being experimented with on a small scale, with rooms outfitted with three interconnected weaving looms, which allow one person to use a system of levers and gears to direct three shuttles, simultaneously, through the warp and weft of the homespun wool, tripling production for woven cloth. While not every town has a manufacturing industry - and it is rare for most to have more than one they specialize in - towns that do have mills are quite successful, as neighboring towns bring their goods to be processed, in exchange for coin or bartered fees. Likewise, villages that produce raw goods will sell them to the mills, who produce finished products, which are then sold within the village, and traded acoss the local region. Such manufacturing towns have the tendency to turn into centers of commerce, where the traders come to them, rather than them having to seek out the buyers themselves. Likewise, a town that is at a popular junxion for travel may end up with a lot of raw goods, and decide to build some mills to take advantage of that, and produce their own finished goods, resulting in more profit. 'Agricultural Industry' Farming is a widespread, and vital, industry across all of Terrak, a mainstay of all central and southern socieites. Major crops include several types of grain, some low-growing fruits, root vegetables, and fruit orchards, with the widest variety of crops grown in the plains areas and cleared forest farms. There is not, as yet, any automated innovation to aid the farmer; cast metal plows are pulled by a team of plate deer, ordo, or airla, and holes are made and seed is sewn manually, with the aid of some digging and scattering tools. Crops re reaped, likewise, by being hand picked, or cut by hand-held blades or beast-drawn scythes, depending on the type of crop. Some people (and furrs) are currently working on innovations that will make the hard work of farming and other aspects of daily life a little easier, and possibly more automated. Promising routes for this are magitech, with attempts to enchant blades with self-moving spells (so far, this tends to result in too many accidents), or perhaps steam, which has been found to be able to move small objects if it can build up enough pressure within a secure container. So far, though, nothing has proved workable out in the field, and a real saleable product remains tantalizingly out of reach. The current frontrunner, right now, is being developed by some Skybourne working in Edge: they are testing the use of runes for movement and stillness, applied via sticky paper to a plow, to get it to start moving, and then stop, when needed. Adjustments are currently being made for moderating the speed and stability of the self-moving plow, or perhaps allowing for spoken commands, because testers are having a hard time catching up to the plows and applying the "stop" sticker without endangering their hands and feet. There are also inherent limitations to using magitech as a means to automate technology, as runes have limitations, particularly on duration. Though anyone can use the magic of a rune once set within an object, the strength and durations of use will vary on the skill of the original caster who imbued the power into the object. The larger something is and the more complicated its movements, the more energy it would use and the quicker it would deplete, too. Without a method of recharging the rune, it would eventually stop functioning. Some runes are designed to activate with the interaction of other energies or materials, such as adding fire. Author Note - The Skybourne in Edge referenced here belong to Aurrie and Kemi, and these experiments and developments are potential ones that will be played out In-Forum, and have not yet taken place as of this article's initial writing in August 2012. The article will be adjusted as they, and others, gradually push technology and innovation ahead through official roleplay. 'Weapons' Both humans and furrs have used weapons for countless centuries, to aid in hunting, defend the home, and to go to war. Not much has changed about weaponry in the last few hundred years, aside from the recent introduction of black powder weapons, which are still in developmental stages for the most part, and not yet in wide use. For the most part, both man and furr rely on a variety of bladed weapons, sometimes enchanted with magic runes in the case of the furrs. Weapons are produced individually by blacksmiths. A good weapons smith typically specializes in only one or two types of weapons, and can be in very high demand, employing various apprentices to help him keep up with his orders. Swords - '''A long blade attached to a short one-handed hilt, or longer two-handed hilt. The blade may be curved or straight, sharpened on both or only one side, and can even be serrated. Styles are as varied as the users, and techniques to make swords range from cast metal forging, to folding, which improves the strength and flexibility over simple cast blades, but takes far longer. These are the most favored choice of humans and in use throughout the world. They are less popular with furrs. '''Polearms - There are many variations of wooden or cane staffs with a large blade mounted on one, or both, ends. Wrapped grips provide stability, and decorations of fur and feathers provide flair - and a means to absorb blood from the spearlike tips, rather than getting the grip slippery. Polearms are a favored weapon of many furr tribes, preferred over the sword. Humans use polearms but this particular weapon is usally carried in addition to a sword, and used by guardsmen. Spears - 'Shorter wooden or cane staffs with a short, often serrated, double-edged blade mounted to the tip. Leather or cord wraps provide the grip. These weapons are thrown at a target, and are very popular among both human and furr hunters - though furr hunters are especially fond of them. '''Bows & Crossbows '- Feather-fletched arrows, tipped in metal or knapped stone, are launched from bent bows of springy wood, or stiffer, smaller, high-powered crossbows. Both humans and furrs use bows as a favorite hunting weapon. Crossbows are almost exclusively used by humans. 'Bolos '- Two to three heavy balls of metal or stone are bound together with a thick cord, and hurled through the air at the target. The weight of the balls causes the cords to entangle around the target, binding arms or legs together, with the potential for the impact to send them to the ground. This weapon is used almost exclusively by furrs, rather than man. 'Throwing Knives '- Small blades, either oblong or starred, that are thrown with a quick flick of the wrist to strike a target. They don't do a high level of damage unless the thrower is exceptionally precise and hits a vital area, so they are not used for hunting. Rather, they are used against weaker targets, like other two-legs, in times of assassination and war. They are a weapon for those who kill from the shadows, rather than those who initiate direct conflict. In use primarily by assassins and rogues, they are not particularly common, but both humans and furrs are skilled with these. 'Black Powder (Explosives) - '''In recent decades, man has begun experimeting with black powder. They discovered that a particular mineral becomes highly volatile when exposed to heat or pressure, creating an explosion relative to the amount of black powder used. The last two decades have been spent finding ways to harness this in a relatively safe manner. Results have been mixed, and since the availability of the black powder is limited, and the technology unreliable, it is not yet in widespread use. '''Boom Sticks '- Though not technically a weapon, these wood and paper tubes stuffed with black powder are quite dangerous. A fuse at one end is lit, providing a time delay before the powder ignites and explodes. Explosive power is relative to how large the stick is, and how tightly packed. They are useful for miners looking to blast through mountain rock. 'Flintlock Rifles '- These are the very first guns, and are in limited use. A wooden stock is mounted to a cast metal barrel about a foot long, with a trigger mechanism on the stock. A packet of black powder is loaded through the muzzle, tamped in with a metal stick, and then a packet of loose shot, or a single round bullet, is placed into the barrel and carefully tamped down on top. When the trigger is pulled, a striking hammer hits the striking plate, causing an ember to hop inside the gun, where it ignites a small packet of black powder behind the ammunition. The pressure that results forces the ammunition down the barrel with violent force. Though these weapons are fairly accurate, and deadly, the time to prep and reload for the next shot, as it is a single-shot weapon, makes them more cumbersome and slow to use than more familiar weapons like crossbows. They are also far more dangerous, as a poorly cast gun can jam or explode, injuring the user rather than the target. They are also loud, and very smoky, and give quite a kickback bruise, so most humans find them rather annoying. Weapons smiths in Edge are currently trying to devise ways to make the weapon smaller, faster, and more reliable. In very limited use and produced primarily by Edge, these are rare to encounter outside of the Vargalands and New Timbervast. 'Cannons '- These actually came into development and use before the flintlock guns. A large barrel of cast iron, open at one end and closed at the other, has a cannonball – or a large wad of sharp objects and shot – packed in through the opening. Black powder is poured through a hole at the back of the cannon, and a lit fuse is stuck down into the hole, igniting the powder and sending the cannonball rocketing off. Cannons set on wheels and racks range in size from 2 feet long and 2 feet high to 3 feet high and 4 feet long. Cannonballs range in sized based on the barrel diameter, from a few inches across to just over a foot, and can get rather heavy. As the barrels of the cannons are far thicker than those of the guns, they have less of a tendency to explode and injure the user, as long as powder is measured carefully. They are in limited use, primarly in the hands of the BladeHunters of Comdob, Jiskadar, the Blades of Edge, and various ships that sail along the Hasseran coast. Most cannons are manufactured in the town of Edge, but are quite expensive to obtain as they require a lot of raw materials and time to build, test, and refine. '''Flint Pistols - Smaller versions of flintlock rifles, with smaller stocks and barrels, making it possible to conceal and weild them more easily. They are excessively hard to come by, and usually found in the hands of furrs, rather than man, who have had more luck modifyng them with magitech to make them more stable, in some cases even eliminating the need for black powder. A magitech pistol in the hands of a human, however, tends to harm the user more than the target.. a failsafe woven into the magics by the furr mages, perhaps. Or maybe it just takes a magic user to use a magic item properly. Either way, pistols - whether magitech or black powder - are still in limited use. But there are rumors of recent breakthroughs among Edge's magitechnicians, so that may change. Whether they will be useable by humans, though, is unknown. Category:World